Tower of the Moon

Chapter 3

    Darkness.

    Cole had lost all sensation from his body, even the ability to panic. Everything felt disconnected, like a dream.

    He had been dream-walking and followed a girl, whom he thought was his sister, through a forest to a strange, dark world. But the girl had not been Rissa. And the world was not Earth. Dangerous magic creatures haunted this place. Several had attacked Cole and the girl and they had fought them off.

    When Cole had tried to follow the fleeing girl, she had shot him with a bolt of magical energy.

    Slowly reality seeped back in, if this was reality--along with a ringing headache. Cole woke laying on the sandy ground, looking up at the sky. In his hand, he still held his sturdy branch, which made for a club--the only weapon he could find in this dark, otherworldly realm. This he'd salvaged from a nearby sickly looking tree. Oddly, the club felt warm to the touch as though some of the energy from the blast had been absorbed by the wood.

    As the world came back into focus, Cole realized that the black shadow figure approached. The air turned cold and the ground turned gray.

    Panicked, Cole scrambled to get up, but his legs felt sluggish and numb. His body wouldn’t obey the imperative command to move. Then the creature overtook him, reaching shadowy hand out to touch Cole on the shoulders. It was like ice. But the cold traveled through his limb chilling his blood. All feeling in his body felt numbed.

    Cole swung the branch at the shadow, but it cut right though it, as though nothing was there, with no effect on the creature.

    Cursing Cole rolled out from under the creature. He could still move, though slowly. He scrambled to his knees before the shadow turned and moved toward him.

    Cole struggled to his feet and turned to meet the shadow creature. This time he swung his stick with all the force he could muster. This time, as it touched the creature there was a sudden burst of energy from the wood, which hit the creature, like a small lightening bolt. Had the wood stored the energy that girl had shot at him?

    Immediately the creature withdrew and with it so did the cold. Feeling returned to Cole’s limbs and he ran up the path that he girl had taken.

    After five minutes, Cole stopped, winded. He stretched his legs to try and get more feeling back, but they were still a little numb. Cole  looked back and saw that the shadow hadn’t followed him. Good. He didn’t want to meet up with that thing again.

    This whole place was crazy, including the girl. Cole just needed to get back home, but he had no idea how. He couldn’t try falling to sleep and dream-waling--he doubted he could even sleep here and second of all, wouldn’t that leave his body here?

    When he met the girl in the forest in their dreams their silver cords went off in opposite directions but when she touched him, his cord had disconnected from where his body was and had matched hers.

    Was Cole really even here? He shook his head. It was all so mystifying. Or had he teleported here somehow? And if the girl didn’t cause it, then who did? She must be the key somehow.

    Cole looked out over the land. The trail he was on climbed upwards along a hill. Now that he was higher, he could see the surrounding area better. And it looked just as desolate as before. The peak he was climbing seemed to be the highest though there were a few hills in the distance.

    Something about the landscape bothered Cole. It was a jumble of crags, crevices and small hills. Nowhere did Cole see any buildings or water.